Call me a late convert. I just bought my first Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL ) computer. It probably won't be my last.
Unfortunately for me, the new 20-inch iMac isn't mine, but my daughter's. She'll soon be going away to college, and her sister is already bugging me about getting her a Mac laptop. I'll probably give in and get one for her, too. These machines are sweet!
Let me back up a bit here. I like technology, and I have all sorts of gadgets, many of which I hardly ever use, packed with features I use even less. Bigger, faster, stronger, better -- I like stuff. For instance, I've got an eight-gig iPod -- which I've stocked with a measly 100 songs. Call it overkill.
I also own a Palm (Nasdaq: PALM ) Treo 700w. Nice phone, sorta. I definitely don't use all the features it comes with, although some that I do want to use don't always work up to spec. I still view the phone as a convergence train wreck, and it's too bad the new iPhone is only available for AT&T's (NYSE: T ) network. All things considered, I'm happy with my Verizon (NYSE: VZ ) service, but I'd abandon my Treo in a heartbeat for the iPhone if they offered it with Verizon. Hey, it's new! And it looks cool, too.
Not surprisingly, the Mac I bought is also beauty and simplicity itself. About five minutes after we opened the box (including boot time and setup), we were surfing the Internet with its built-in Wi-Fi, and playing around with its video camera, microphone, and speaker system. Had it been yet another Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT ) Windows-based computer, I'm pretty sure I'd still be booting up as I write this.
As new as the Mac experience may be for me, I don't seem to be the only one smitten. Sales for Mac desktops grew 10.8% in May, although that growth rate only inched upward compared to April's. According to market research firm NPD, Mac sales really began to outpace PCs after Apple switched to popular, widely used Intel (Nasdaq: INTC ) chips. By far, Apple's biggest increase came from notebooks, which saw a huge 65% jump in sales.
Apple continues to steal overall market share from competitors, gaining a 14.3% share of new computer sales in May, compared with 12.5% in April. However, as Fool contributor Tim Beyers has noted previously, a 1% gain in market share is worth just $1.48 billion in sales.
Part of Apple's resurgence can be traced to the iPod "halo effect," but that can't explain everything -- certainly not my own infatuation. Besides, maybe the iPhone is the new iPod.
Apple's investment thesis has been almost as much about the technology as the stock. I'll defer to Tim on whether Apple's stock is a buy today, but I sure think the computers are. Now I've just got to see whether I can get volume discounts, since I know my daughter's Mac won't be the last one I buy.
Microsoft and Intel are recommendations of
Motley Fool Inside Value. Palm is a recommendation of Motley Fool Stock Advisor. Whatever your technological skills, the Motley Fool has an investing service for you.
Fool contributor Rich Duprey does not have a financial position in any of the stocks mentioned in this article. You can see his holdings here. The Motley Fool's disclosure policy is platform-agnostic.
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